100 Ways to Reduce Your Impact
I share my car with three other people who live in my building. I almost never use it, because I commute by bike and buses. Sharing it between three people cuts the registration and insurance costs to a third, and everyone pays for their own petrol (I keep a clip board in the car for a mileage log, and excel calculates km/L and charges back accordingly). We use a shared Google Calendar layer to book the car when we are going somewhere or have some need of it; if no one’s booked it you just take it when you want it.
I’ve been fascinated with dehumidifiers this entire summer. My air conditioner is not very good and the humidity level in my house is about 57%. The temp max in the house peaks at around 84% but I think if I reduce the humidity, and with the use of fans, my comfort level would be greatly enhanced. Also, I saw an exciting product last year that looks like a big dehumidifier, with the addition of a water purifier module. Then the outputs are 2 spigots with drinkable water, hot and cold! Bad thing, to me, is the cost is over $2,000. My cheapo solution to this is would be to use the dehumidifier water, like some of the other commenters mentioned, other non drinkable uses in the home and garden. For example: Use it for the washing machine for the initial washing cycle. Also, for watering the garden, washing the car, etc. I remember years ago, a problem with dehumidifier water was mildew. How about adding a little vinegar or a little bleach to the water tank. Would that help, do you think? As for the drinking of distilled water discussion: I’ve been drinking distilled water for over 30 years and my teeth are great, hair healthy, skin clear and I feel pretty good. I do use a good multi vitamin supplement and a calcium pill daily. Thanks for the stimulating post and the helpful comments.
using a dehumidifier to lower the apparent temperature is a really effective strategy. Water has one of the highest specific heats of any substance known to man (which is why is is used everywhere for thermal management). Dropping your humidity by 1/2 would give the effect of dropping the apparent temperature by about 20 degrees (depending on actual temp). The actual temperature would stay the same, but sweat can now easily evaporate from your skin thereby cooling your skin.
However, you should only pursue this strategy if you can prevent the humidity in your house from rising again. If you can do this your house will stay "cool", if no you will have about as high of an energy bill as if you were using an air conditioner.
Generally it is easier to seal a house from moisture than to keep heat out, so overall I would recommend dehumidifiers.
on average a 1/2 inch hose (like mine) uses 6.5 9 gallons per minute according to my city’s website, so I would have to be cleaning my driveway for 20 25 minutes with a hose to use that much water. but if i had a 5/8 inch hose it’d be more, and my father used to hose off his driveway and sidewalk and it took him at least 15 minutes, before he moved on to the gutter [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] in front of his house. no joke. i don’t think the goal is to "bring about a society that bears no resemblance to one that brought us so much prosperity and growth", but to convince people to think before they act and try to be [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] a little more aware of their personal impact. remember that we once had a lot of industrial prosperity that was tied to cruel labor practices, but that didn’t make it okay to chain a woman to a sewing machine for 16 hours without a bathroom break. just because it brough prosperity in a different time, doesn’t mean we have to continue in that fashion. cotton plantations were mighty prosperous back in the day, too.
When I take a shower, I collect the cold water in a bucket as I am waiting for the hot water. I then flush the toilet with the collected cold water. If the toilet does not need to be flushed at the moment, I just set the bucket aside until it does need to be flushed. I learned this from another instructable. My household operates on the its yellow let it mellow rule. I am not sure of the impact on water use/bill, as I have been doing this since I moved into my home, but I certainly feel like I am doing something to reduce/reuse every time I take a shower. You could certainly use the collected cold water for other purposes.
I would not use CFL lights if you paid me to and gave me the lights for free as a bonus. Read the following from a government web site [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] on proper disposal of CFL bulbs:
This is from The Environmental Protection Agency
What to Do if a Fluorescent or Other Mercury Containing Light Bulb Breaks Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) are lighting more homes than ever before, and EPA is encouraging Americans to use and recycle them safely. Carefully recycling CFLs prevents the release of mercury into the environment and allows for the reuse of glass, ****ls and other materials that make up fluorescent lights.
EPA is continually reviewing its clean up and disposal recommendations for CFLs to ensure that the Agency presents the most up to date information for consumers and businesses. Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection released a CFL breakage study report on February 25, 2024. EPA has conducted an initial review of this study and, as a result of this review, we have updated the CFL cleanup instructions below.
Pending the completion of a full review of the Maine study, EPA will determine whether additional changes to the cleanup recommendations are warranted. The agency plans to conduct its own study on CFLs after thorough review of the [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] Maine study.
Fluorescent light bulbs contain a very small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing. EPA recommends the following clean up and disposal below. Please also read the information on this page about what Never to Do After a Mercury Spill.
Before Clean up: Air Out the Room
Have people and pets leave the room, and don’t let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out. Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more. Shut off the central forced air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one. Clean Up Steps for Hard Surfaces
Carefully scoop up glass pieces and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with ****l lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place towels in the glass jar or plastic bag. Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces. Clean up Steps for Carpeting or Rug
Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with ****l lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken. Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag. Clean up Steps for Clothing, Bedding and Other Soft Materials
If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be thrown away. Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage. You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you are wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb. If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal. Disposal of Clean up Materials
Immediately place all clean up materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup. Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean up materials. Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states do not allow such trash disposal. Instead, they require that broken and unbroken mercury containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center. Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Air Out the Room During and After Vacuuming
The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced air heating/air conditioning system and open a window before vacuuming. Keep the [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed. If you still want to use the things, might I suggest a HAZMAT suit?To sum it up: Chronic, in other words long term, exposure to mercury vapor in diffuse quantities definitely leads to symptoms. The diffuse quantities are measured in micrograms/m^3. The amount of vapor in a CFL might be 1000 times that, up to 5 milligrams total. The most dangerous, or most absorbed, form of elemental mercury is the vapor. (Other molecules formed [عزيزي الزائر يتوجب عليك التسجيل لمشاهدة الرابط للتسجيل اضغط هنا] with mercury can be much more deadly.)
So the lesson to be taken from this is that airing out the room is extremely important.
However, if you live anywhere near a coal plant, or any industry that pollutes the air and has intrinsic mercury then CFLs are only a bit more dangerous than the long term effects of breathing air. Even if current day coal plants are that much cleaner there has been at least a century of large scale industry without regulation. This means there is quite a bit of mercury in the environment that would otherwise be locked away.
Therefore if anyone enjoys fish, or really any animal or plant, but top ocean predators tend to have more mercury, they should quit eating. Some so much in fact that there are advisories against those who should not risk their health to eat the fish. Mmmm, sushi! 🙂
first of all mercury is flushed out of the system just not very fast and then the speed depends what it binds within the ****. next there are safe limits the UN sets it at 1.6mcg per kg of **** mass per week and there is a question if that is being too cautious. finally the exposure from a individual broken bulb is minimal even if you ingest the full 1mg (witch is impossible) from a bulb you would only receive a 7 week dose if you weigh about the norm, there for it is safe to break one every other month for an average person. the real problem is proper production and disposal.
Restricting many openings from allowing air infilltration to your home is a positive way to reduce utility costs. However, do not forget that a house must be able to breath. A house that is too tight will soon have problems with moisture damage and possibly mildew or mold. The air in the house will become stagnant and unhealthy. The normal entry and exit through the outside doors is usually not enough to prevent the above problems. Even more importantly, roof and eave vents need to be large enough to keep fresh air in the attic to prevent the same problems which can quickly ruin the roof.
Buy a Diesel car, such as VW and Audi TDIs, request that they bring more over. Turbo Diesels are 30% more effiecient than turbocharged gasoline engines and 50% more efficient that naturally aspirated gasoline engines. Hybrids get great mileage, but their advantage is lessened outside of cities and traffic.
Even if you don’t get a Diesel or Hybrid, get rid of the SUV and get a hatchback. Unless you tow regularly and need that much power a hatch will fit all the stuff your SUV will and get at least 50% better mileage. A VW Jetta Sportwagon TDI has 66.9 cubic feet of cargo room and can get 50mpg highway. A Fit has 57.3 Cubic feet, enough for 2 bikes or a self propelled mower, or your dorm room. Not only will you get better economy in a hatch or wagon, you’ll have more fun driving it.
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